Hair Loss in Men

For the majority of men hair loss is not something distant but an unpleasant everyday chore. Fortunately, attitudes to losing hair and baldness change, as well as the techniques to treat it. Nevertheless, hair loss in men is so frequent that one can't pretend that the problem does not exist. At the same time, there are guys who never go bald, even when they are over 70. So, it is not age only that makes one's hair fall off.

Hair loss in men is due to many reasons and to some extend it can be said that it is a natural process - not so much of aging but rather of growing up. Hair loss in men can start as early as the late twenties and can continue for the rest of your life. The most common type of hair loss in men is “androgenetic alopecia”, which means hair loss due to high levels of male sex hormones and hereditary tendency to lose hair. Though androgenetic alopecia is not the only type of hair loss in men, it is the most common and because of this it is commonly called “male-pattern baldness”.

The main reason for male-pattern baldness if the male hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT). If your hair follicles are sensitive to it, then you can predict that you will have hair loss. The sensitivity to this hormone differs in the front, top and crown of the scalp, the back and the sides and this is why you lose hair from particular areas only, rather than from all over the head. Usually male-pattern baldness starts first with thinning of the hair and then shedding follows.

Typically male-pattern baldness follows a pre-defined hairline. One of the widely-recognized classifications is the Norwood classification and it defines two major patters and several less common types of hair loss. In the beginning hair loss starts in the front part of the head and forms a temporal recession. Later hair loss starts at the crown but still there is a considerable amount of hair between the crown and the front. Then the frontal hair loss continues to the crown and in some years or decades, the frontal line and the baldness of the crown (which is also advancing) merge and as a result there is a wide bald band at the top of the hair. The hair around the ears and in the back is last and usually it takes decades till it is lost as well.

Generally male-pattern baldness happens according to the above scenario, though often different factors (or treatment) interfere. For instance, one of the most important patterns of male hair loss is the hereditary factor. In this case “hereditary” does not mean inherited only from the father. Rather, it is pretty common that male hair loss follows a pattern that is inherited from the mother's father and other male relatives. Though women don't suffer from male-pattern hair loss so often, they transmit it genetically to their male children.

Though the male-pattern hair loss is the most common type of hair loss in men, it is not the only one. There are other types of hair loss - for instance temporary hair loss due to stress, diseases, bad hair products, forgetting to comb for ages, etc. The good news about this types of hair loss is that they are treatable and preventable. In many cases when the cause is discovered and eliminated (i.e. you are no more subject to stress), even special treatment is not necessary because your hair might start growing again without you taking any special measures.

As far as treatment of hair loss is concerned, the general rule that you need to discover the cause first applies as well. Medicine is advancing rapidly and it is possible to slow down considerably the process of losing hair. There are also many other solutions available, so if you notice that your hair is going away, don't feel desperate and helpless but see a doctor and start treatment.